On the evening of September 17, 2016, gunfire broke out at a neighborhood block party in the 2600 block of Birney Place SE in Washington, D.C., around 8:23 PM. Multiple people were struck; 31-year-old Scorpio‑Rodney Phillips, a Black male and father who worked as a landscaper, was shot and killed. The shooting also killed 18-year-old Zoruan Otto Harris and wounded seven others, including men, women, and a child.

Phillips’ death added to a pattern of loss for his family: his mother had previously lost three other sons to gun violence in the city.

Anyone who knew Scorpio‑Rodney Phillips, was at the block party, or has information that could help the investigation is asked to come forward.